Do Women Enjoy Equal Right in Nepal?

To what extent do the women enjoy equal rights in your country?

Our country, Nepal is popularly known as a traditional nation. It gives more priority to its customs and traditions rather than other subjects of matter. This country has been ruled and operated by majority of men since the beginning of humanity. Men play the vital role in each sector of development. History of Nepal is the evidence that all the development works are carried out by majority of men and less women. Even though, there is equal importance of male and female in development of nation, females are kept aside in development as well as social matter.

In each and every sector, men play a main role and women are in inferior position. The main cause of such vast differences is the lack of education and public awareness. Such differences start from the early period of males and females life. In point of view of Nepalese people, females are regarded as a curse and males as boon. They do not like bearing female baby as they have to get her married and provide dowry. So, they take it as burden. That’s why, when they bear a boy and a girl, they give higher priority and more love to boy and the girl is kept within the four walls of home. Thus, no matter how talented they are, they never get a chance to develop.

The condition of women living in our country is really miserable. Women living in our society are still under the shadow of darkness. They are bounded by the traditional concept of conservative society. They are busy mostly in kitchen and household works. Though, women occupy more population in Nepal, they have less participation in the high level jobs and some other important matters related to their life. They can experience very few legal rights and even our society places them in an inferior position. This was often justified as being the result of biological differences between the sexes.

Women were thought to be more emotional and less decisive than men. They are not given sufficient opportunities to improve themselves and are discouraged to go ahead. No matter whatever progress they make, they are still suppressed by this traditional society. Moreover, they are somehow experiencing basic rights, but they are deprived of social rights in many ways. Furthermore, they are regarded as the symbol of creating, protecting and nursing. They bear and grow-up children. They have many more responsibilities like biological, social and national. But, still their condition in our nation is backward. They are so because of male domination, traditional, social structures, unequal laws, lack of awareness, poverty and lack of government protection for them.

Women in our society have been confined only to household chores, rearing children, preparing food, collecting fodder for cattle and family sanitation. Especially, they do not have freedom for movement and for adopting job. They are deprived of higher studies and property rights. They are not encouraged for social exposure. Furthermore, they had been the victim of domestic violence from their husbands, brothers, mother-in-law and even relatives. Their appeal is not uprightly accepted even by the administrator. Sometimes, they are even beaten, kidnapped and killed. Hence, they are really living a sorrowful life. CBS (Central Bureau of Statistics) and the report of UNDP shows that women’s participation in developmental works of Nepal is of low grade. Their rate of involvement in different sectors like education, civil service, participation in teaching and legal practice is very low.

Though many NGOs (National Government Organization), INGOs (International Government Organization) and governmental organizations are working for the rights of women, their condition has not been improved significantly. Therefore, in first place, the women themselves must raise voice for their rights. Government, stakeholders, NGOs and INGOs has to take certain measures to uplift the condition of women in every nook and cranny of Nepal. Awareness programs must be conducted in their favor. Rallies with slogans like “GENDER EQUALITY”, “EDUCATION FOR ALL”, and etcetera must be spread all over our country. Thus, women must be provided with rights equal to that of men.

Reference; The present status of Nepali women - Ashmita Bhattarai